Robert David FitzGerald III AM OBE (22 February 1902 – 24 May 1987) was an Australian

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

Biography

FitzGerald was born in

Hunters Hill, New South Wales Hunters Hill is a suburb of the lower north shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Hunters Hill is located north-west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government ar ...

, a third-generation Australian of

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

extraction, and studied science at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

. He left before graduating, however, and followed in the footsteps of both his father and grandfather Robert D. FitzGerald by taking up a post as a

surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is ca ...

. In the 1930s he travelled to

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

where he worked the Native Lands Commission, surveying tribal boundaries, an experience important to his poetry. He spent

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

doing engineering surveys in

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

and working for the Australian Department of the Interior (from 1939 to 1965). FitzGerald's poetry, together with that of

Kenneth Slessor Kenneth Adolphe Slessor (27 March 190130 June 1971) was an Australian poet, journalist and official war correspondent in World War II. He was one of Australia's leading poets, notable particularly for the absorption of modernist influences int ...

, was an important

modernist Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

influence on Australian literature of the late 1920s and 1930s, being at once more serious and more workmanlike than much of the poetry of the period.

Jack Lindsay Jack Lindsay (20 October 1900 – 8 March 1990) was an Australian-born writer, who from 1926 lived in the United Kingdom, initially in Essex. He was born in Melbourne, but spent his formative years in Brisbane. He was the eldest son of Norman L ...

wrote of them: In later life, too, FitzGerald was influential, not only through his poetry but as a lecturer and reviewer. He died in

Glen Innes, New South Wales Glen Innes is a parish and town on the Northern Tablelands, in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the centre of the Glen Innes Severn Shire Council. The town is located at the intersection of the New England Highway and ...

, aged eighty-four.

Bibliography

Poetry collections

* ''To Meet the Sun'' (1926) * ''The Greater Apollo : Seven Metaphysical Songs'' (1927) * ''

Moonlight Acre ''Moonlight Acre'' (1938) is a collection of poems by Australian poet R. D. Fitzgerald. It won the ALS Gold Medal in 1938. Contents * "Moonlight Acre" * "Copernicus" * "The Hidden Bole" * "Essay on Memory" Critical reception On its original ...

'' (1938) * ''This Night's Orbit : Verses'' (1953) * '' Southmost Twelve'' (1962) * ''Robert D. Fitzgerald : Selection and introduction by the author'' (1963) * ''Of Some Country : 27 Poems'' (1963) * ''Forty Years' Poems'' (1965) * ''R. D. Fitzgerald Reads From His Own Work'' (1971) * ''Product : Later Verses'' (1977) * ''Some Poems of R. D. Fitzgerald'' (1983)

Single poem volumes

* ''Heemskerck Shoals'' (1944) * ''

Between Two Tides ''Between Two Tides'' (1952) is a long narrative poem by Australian poet R. D. Fitzgerald, which included illustrations by Norman Lindsay. It won the Grace Leven Prize for Poetry in 1952. Outline The poem is "drawn from ''An Account of the Nati ...

'' (1952) * ''

The Wind at Your Door ''The Wind at Your Door'' (1959) is a one-poem volume by Australian poet R. D. Fitzgerald. The poem was originally published in '' The Bulletin'' on 17 December 1958, and later in this 275 copy Talkarra Press limited edition, signed by the autho ...

'' (1958) * ''One Such Morning'' (1966)

Edited

* ''Australian Poetry 1942'' (1942) * ''Mary Gilmore'' (1963) * ''The Letters of Hugh McCrae'' (1970)

Essays

* ''Of Places and Poetry'' (1976)

Criticism

* ''The Elements of Poetry'' (1963)

Drama

* ''Time Wasted : A Play'' (1926)

Awards

* 1928 Panton Arts Club (UK), Festival of Arts and Letters Bronze Medal, winner for ''To Meet the Sun'' * 1938 Australian Literature Society Poetry Gold Medal winner for ''Moonlight Acre'' * 1938 Australia's Sesquicentenary Celebration Long Poem Prize, winner for ''Essay on Memory'' * 1951 Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to literature * 1952

Grace Leven Prize for Poetry The Grace Leven Prize for Poetry was an annual poetry award in Australia, given in the name of Grace Leven who died in 1922. It was established by William Baylebridge who "made a provision for an annual poetry prize in memory of 'my benefactress ...

winner for ''Between Two Tides'' * 1959

winner for ''The Wind at Your Door : A Poem'' * 1962

winner for ''Southmost Twelve'' * 1974 Robert Frost Medallion (now known as

Christopher Brennan Award The Christopher Brennan Award (formerly known as the Robert Frost Prize) is an Australian award given for lifetime achievement in poetry. The award, established in 1973, takes the form of a bronze plaque which is presented to a poet who produces w ...

) * 1982 Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(AM) for services to literatureAM 1982
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Notes

External links

biographical essay by Rafe Champion.

Academy Library, UNSW@ADFA (Retrieved 13 August 2007) 1902 births 1987 deaths Members of the Order of Australia 20th-century Australian poets Australian male poets ALS Gold Medal winners 20th-century Australian male writers {{Australia-writer-stub